


Resonating Realities

by Nemo Caligo (nemocaligo)



Category: Original Work
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-19
Updated: 2020-09-19
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:46:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26413624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nemocaligo/pseuds/Nemo%20Caligo
Comments: 1
Kudos: 1





	Resonating Realities

"I'll never understand other people. Everyone leaves me. Is it because of me? Is it because of their own life situation? I'll never know," he says.   
The waiter appears, looks at the menu that's been put face down on the table. "Are you ready to order?" they ask.  
Cadence meets the waiter's eyes, and replies that he'd like two dishes of Pasta Pesto. The waiter looks somewhat perplexed at the table, thinking for a few seconds, before coming to their senses and nodding hastily, while saying "Coming right up".   
Cadence looks in front of him again, and continues to ramble, without paying any heed to the guest at his table.  
"Relationships are scary. When I don't have anyone, I feel more powerful than ever. I can do anything I set my mind to, if I can avoid the feeling of loneliness. But as soon as people start coming into my life, I have something to lose, and that scares me more than anything. It suffocates me. I never know what to do, or how to act. I end up pushing away the people that matter the most to me, as soon as I feel like the relationship starts deviating from its usual self. The relationship could be normally evolving; the spark of first love could be going out, like it usually does. But to me, it feels like the relationship is ending; not like it's evolving".  
He pauses to take a breath, grabs hold of the glass of water in front of him and takes a slow sip before putting it down.  
He looks up again. "Not to mention the start of a relationship. The feeling of not being enough to satisfy the other person. The constant worry of being left out, and the struggle of not getting too attached while simultaneously not being too distant or indifferent. The difficulty of not asking too many questions, digging too deep or overshare too early. Honestly, choosing between having relationships with people or being alone is like picking between a calamity and a catastrophe."  
The waiter comes up from behind, and places two plates in front of Cadence. "Enjoy your meal," they say.   
Cadence frowns, takes one of the plates, and puts it at the other end of the table. "Sorry about that," he says with an apologetic voice, "some people are just too inconsiderate."  
The pasta is simple. Tomato sauce, a click of pesto, and a few sprinkles of parmesan with two dozen or so pine nuts. But it smells delicious. He's hungry and hasn't had anything to eat since yesterday morning. He finishes his meal and looks up. His guest hasn't touched the plate in front of them.  
"I guess not," Cadence mumbles to himself.  
He stands up, goes to the counter and rings the bell. A kid — no, it's just a small person — comes out from a door behind it.   
"Two pasta pesto?" they ask.  
Cadence nods.   
"That'll be thirty dollars."   
Cadence holds his phone over the card reader, and the machine verifies the payment. He starts walking away, and hears "You can't leave the rubber duck here" from behind him.   
"Thank you for reminding me," he says and puts on his headset while still walking towards the door, "I really can't live without these."  
"The rubber duck wasn't what I expected," he continues mumbling to himself, as he walks out to the street.


End file.
